Euro 2008 / Mike Norman / 09 April 2008 /

"Mystical" Mike Norman puts aside the Premiership-based players and looks into his crystal ball to nominate the likes of Tosten Frings, Sergio Ramos and Andrea Pirlo as potential key players for their respective sides at Euro 2008

In recent weeks I've pinpointed some outstanding youngsters to watch out for in Euro 08, as well as tell you about the different captains that will be on view in Austria and Switzerland in the summer. But for every young footballer that shines, or for every captain that leads by example, there will be a key player who will be pivotal to his team's success........

Who will be key at the European Championships this year? I'm sure you won't thank me for highlighting the obvious, so below are six of the best NON-Premiership stars who could have a major say in determining which country is crowned Champions of Europe.

If Germany are to live up to their [5.4] favourites tag by winning the competition, then the experienced Torsten Frings will have a big say. This versatile midfielder cares little for the reputation of the players he comes up against and is likely to put in more 'crunching' tackles than anyone in the tournament. He can get forward too, and he will get more licence to do this than team-mate Michael Ballack as German manager Joachim Low prefers to use the Chelsea midfielder in the holding role.

Frings is an outstanding athlete with a terrific engine, and because of the consistent level of ability within the German team, he is not relied upon heavily to produce the goods, giving him the freedom to play with little pressure. Germany are [1.55] to beat Poland in their opening fixture - a win will set them up nicely in their quest to win group B at odds of [1.73].

At [7.2], Spain are expected to go a long way to putting past failures behind them, and in Sergio Ramos they boast one of the finest full-backs in world football. This Real Madrid starlet has it all - youth, pace, strength, confidence - and to add to that he can score goals. He possesses an abundance of energy that allows him to get up and down the right flank with regularity, and with Torres and Fabregas in the Spanish team, Ramos will not be seen as the main performer - but he will certainly be key. Spain open up against Russia on June 10th, and they can be backed at [1.74] to win that game on route to topping group D at [1.99].

France, Italy and Netherlands lock horns in a mouthwatering group C, and it's Jeremy Toulalan, Andrea Pirlo and Joris Mathijsen that I see as being key players in determining who qualifies and who ultimately goes the furthest. To win the competition, Pirlo's Italy are the more fancied of the trio at [8.6], just ahead of France ([9.8]) and Netherlands ([14.5]).

Jeremy Toulalan is an immense talent and a natural successor to Claude Makelele. He has been outstanding for Lyon this season, and anyone who watched France's recent victory against England will have noticed that it was Toulalan who snuffed out much of England's attack. He will sit just in front of the back four and will break up the play and frustrate the opposition to the hilt. He suffered an injury playing for Lyon last weekend but is expected to return in four weeks time, making him fresh for Euro 08. Keep your eyes on him, he is a class act.

Pirlo's role for Italy is slightly different to that of Toulalan in the fact that he is allowed to get forward from his deep midfield position. Pirlo was voted amongst the top three players at the 2006 World Cup and was highly regarded as the Man of the Match in both the semi-final and final. Similar performances are expected from him this summer and Italy should at least qualify from the group at odds of [1.48]. They are [2.72] to win the group, but France may well be a tough nut to crack, and they are available at [3.05] to finish top or at [1.57] to qualify.

At [3.75] to win group C ([1.87] to qualify) Netherlands will need Joris Mathijsen to be at his brilliant best, and it's credit to him that out of all the defenders available to Marco van Basten, it's Mathijsen that is seen as the permanent fixture. Mathijsen will be a key player if the Dutch progress, but I fear the Italians and French will be too strong.

When you can boast players such as Nani, Ronaldo and Quaresma in your team, then it's hard to pick a player other than these three who could be key for Portugal. For that reason, I'm jumping ship and taking the easy option. Whoever plays as the lone striker for Portugal this summer will have a lot of weight on his shoulders to put away the many chances that will undoubtedly come his way. Be it Nuno Gomes, Hugo Almeida or Ariza Makukula, the lone striker for Portugal is going to have a very key role to play. Portugal are just [1.8] to beat Turkey in their opening fixture - a win should set them on their way to winning group A at odds of [2.54] and possibly the competition at [8.8].

When you're looking to predict who might be the player of the tournament, it's hard not to look beyond the flair players such as Ronaldo or Torres, but if it is to be any of the above players, then I think Torsten Frings is set to have a massive few weeks in June. Who do you think has the ability and potential to be named the player of the tournament for Euro 08?

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